In a Quandary over James

-
I have a decision to make in the re-write of my novel. Having added two new characters, James and his younger brother, Michael (Glitch), I have to decide whether to kill James off.

If I do kill him off, then it would mean that Hartley would take Michael under his wing and his roof. There is certainly a role for Michael to play in this story and rest of the trilogy too.

If I don't kill James off, then there is no way that he would abandon his brother (James is 17, Michael is 10). They're street kids who have survived without adults for a long time. Could James and Michael still have a purpose in the trilogy if they weren't so close at hand?

Knowing who attacks James (and kidnaps Michael), I can see a purpose to his death. It would be a method of showing what the villain's magical power is but with a healer in our party of friends, surely he could be saved.

My son (also 10) says it would be too sad to kill James. I'm still undecided. Hm. I think I need more coffee.

Comments

  1. Kelly Hashway1 June 2015 at 13:20

    Deciding whether or not to kill a character is always tough. Good luck. I'm sure you'll figure out what's best for the story.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Fi1 June 2015 at 18:51

      Thanks, Kelly. Still haven't decided.

      Delete

Post a Comment

Your comment will appear once it has been approved. Thank you for your interest.

Popular posts from this blog

Taking location inspiration from real life

-
Image
Real life doesn't just have to provide inspiration for our characters. It can also feed into the locations we use in our writing. This is the school I attended between the ages of seven and eight years old. This photograph, and more of the interior, was kindly taken by an old school friend. I always loved this building and now it has provided the inspiration for Darkacre School in my novel. Photograph taken by Dan Howard of 500px.com York Minster (from my home town) was the inspiration for the cathedral where Rex Haven's funeral takes place in my novel. Taken from www.rightmove.co.uk The terraces of the South Bank area of York, where I lived for a time, are the streets of the old town in my novel. The details don't have to remain the same - we writers are tailors of imagination after all - but basing our story locations in reality can add a grounding element to our writing that convinces our readers. What real locations have you used in your wr...
Read more

A Writerly Advent Calendar - Window No. 13

-
Image
There's nothing better than taking a little writerly touch along on an evening out - even if no one notices it apart from me. Why not buy your writerly friend a piece of writing related jewellery or cufflinks. The Literary Gift Company The Literary Gift Company DoonyAndMoony - Etsy JezebelCharms - Etsy charmphilosophy - Etsy Custom Made
Read more

Fresh Blood

-
Image
I've recently finished a new murder mystery play called Thoroughly Murdered Millie . Set in the 1920s, rich young widow Millie Harper-Smythe shocks her family (and the staff) with her plans for the future. Her stepchildren will lose their home, William the butler has no choice but to emigrate and who knows what she has in mind for the gardener? Can anyone stop her? You can find this play over on the Murdering The Text website. Have a look .
Read more